Hi Roger and Bill,

Roger, you suggest that improvisation has a specific purpose i.e., to lead the song somewhere, whether it be the next chord or next cadence, or next phrase. I think that is incorrect. Improvisation is an embellishment of the music, an "add-on" if you will, to give the music flavor, to give the musician an opportunity to express freely musical ideas, and to provide a colorful, musical interlude between vocals or instrumental solos. When musicians "take a ride" (improvise), they are freewheeling it within the chord structures and progressions of the tune being played. They are playing musical ideas they "hear". How do they hear these ideas? Simply from listening, listening. listening to those improvisors they admire, then copying their "licks" (the notes and rhythmic content of short passages). Those short passages you learn through listening become the building blocks of extended improvisations as you "string" them together to eventually make an eight bar improve for example. Then your eight bar improve leads eventually to a sixteen bar improve and so on. Listen, listen, listen. Build, build, build. That is the process in a nut shell.

Bill, I agree wholeheartedly with you that improvisation is a "feeling". But I believe that "feeling" can be learned through listening. I believe most of our KN musicians can acquire that feeling simply because if I were to watch them while they are "LISTENING", they are rocking to the note and rhythmic content of an improvisation. They "feel" it. I think that "feeling" can be learned through listening. It is working for me anyway.

Gotta go guys. Have KN, must play.

Chuck